By LYNETE HAALAND, Four Points News
A Vandegrift entrepreneur team is literally thinking outside of the box as it launches its new company Bamboo Boxes to foster creativity in children.
Bamboo Boxes are monthly subscriptions that come with five themed activities that foster a child’s creativity, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills.
“This December was our first month of selling and shipping out boxes. Our December boxes have a winter theme, and we are already prepping for another themed box in January,” said Keeton Field, chief executive officer and a senior at VHS.
Each activity comes with supplies that allow a child to be completely original with their creations. The ideas and skills that are gained from this creativity follow Bloom’s Taxonomy, which is the same type of learning structure that the QUEST program employs.
“We sometimes even like to refer to Bamboo Boxes as ‘QUEST in a box’,” Field said.
Bamboo Boxes was formed last year through the IncubatorEDU program at Vandegrift with current students Vanessa Zon, chief design officer, and Eesha Patel, director of creative marketing. Two people on the team are in college now: Aditi Rao, chief operations officer and she attends George Washington University, and George Young, chief creation officer and he attends the University of St. Andrews in Scotland. Bamboo Box’s Mentor is Brian Agnew, who runs Supero Healthcare Solutions.
Bamboo Boxes was one of 21 Vandegrift INCubator teams that pitched in front of five judges from the community in May. The team received funding from Viper Nation Academic Booster to start its business.
This year, in the AcceleratorEDU program, the team has gotten its bank account, LLC, and has officially launched.
“We are so excited to give kids something that is both fun and educational,” Field said. “Our boxes are also perfect for parents because they are a great way to get children off of their dreaded screens.”
Bamboo Boxes are available through www.bamboo-boxes.com and prices range from $29.99 for one box to $19.99 with a year-long subscription. Field said they make great gifts for any child — son, daughter, niece, nephew or grandchild — ranging in age from 5 to 12.
